vinylfandomcom-20200213-history
Peter Grant
Peter James "G" Grant is a music manager, best known as the manager of Led Zeppelin, and also a record executive for the band‘s label, Swan Song Records. He is based on the historical figure of the same name. Pilot In 1973, Richie Finestra is picked up at the airport after arriving home from Germany with news that there's an emergency with Led Zeppelin that Richie needs to attend to. Richie approaches lead singer Robert Plant backstage at Madison Square Garden and attempts to smooth things over. Plant tells him he should talk to his manager, Peter Grant. Peter, however, is in the middle of berating a concert promoter for allowing the sale of unauthorized Zeppelin merchandise, so Robert speaks with Richie instead. He tells Richie that the band agreed to a 20 percent royalty rate, but discovered that his label, American Century, attempted to cut it in half without their knowing. Richie claims to have no knowledge of this deceit and promises to make things right, but Plant dismisses him and leaves to perform while Peter yells at Robert to "Get out there and do your fucking job". Back in the car, Richie calls Scott Levitt, the label's lawyer, and reams him for messing up the deal. He orders Scott to fix the situation with Peter. The next morning, Richie arrives at his office to find Zak Yankovich, Scott and Skip Fontaine already in a meeting with a livid Peter Grant. Peter is outraged that Richie attempted to do business with one of his clients behind his back. Making matters worse, Scott accidently mentioned the deal with PolyGram and Grant vows to keep Zeppelin's money away from "those Nazi bastards" and storms out. Gallery Peter Grant (1973).jpg|Peter Grant Peter Grant and Robert Plant.jpg|Peter Grant and Robert Plant Peter Grant and Led Zeppelin.jpg|Peter Grant and Led Zeppelin Trivia * In real life, Grant was well-known for being extremely protective of the band, making sure that most of the money from concerts and albums were in Zeppelin's hands, and never put his own interests above the band's. His passionate efforts to secure the rights of his clients led to the improvement of how musicians were treated by promoters and record companies. * According to rock journalist Steven Rosen: "Peter Grant, former bouncer and wrestler, was, in many respects, the physical embodiment of a Led Zeppelin. Standing over six feet and weighing over 300 pounds, he used his intimidating presence to maintain order and to keep his charges safe and worry-free ... His raison d’etre was simple - protecting his band and their finances. When a bootlegger or unauthorized photographer was identified, it was the lucky infringing party who was let off with merely a severe verbal reprimand and confiscation of unauthorized T-shirts and film." * Actor, Ian Hart stands at a height of 5′ 8″ and appeared in the episode to weigh less than 300 pounds, while the real life Grant stood at a whopping height of 6′ 5″ and weighed over 300 pounds. Category:Characters Category:Historical figures Category:Music managers